1 month of rest and first therapy

You won't feel a thing!

Howdy! It's been a long time, more than one month since the half-marathon that has left me injured again. As I was telling you in my last post, I was planing to get at least one month of rest, and so I did.

Orthodox Easter brings me once again to Romania and at the heart of the Carpathian mountains for some sun and fresh air. In Bucharest, I have the opportunity to finally visit a podiatrist and get an advice on my foot. After a short ultrasound session, he confirms the diagnostic : Plantar fasciitis it is! Thanks doc, now I am relieved :)

What's more concerning is that he notices some oedema below the plantar fascia, which means some swelling or fluids trapped and causing the acute pain I felt the day after the half-marathon. This could get nasty! Fortunately I stay a week and he books me for three sessions of naked voodoo dancing rituals (actually I asked and it's called cryoultrasound). Basically they start by running some electrical current in my leg to create a burning heat in my sole, thus dilating the veins and improving blood flow. After that, they use an ultrasound machine to stimulate the healing response. In order to increase 3 times the intensity (hence the healing response I guess), they put some very cold balm on my foot first (-1°C). Very high tech material, as usual, I love Romania for that!

Overall about three times 15min on the table. Not really painful, but the burning sensation was hard to stand! According to him, this would reduce the swelling and I'd be back on trail the next week. Well, I prefer not to get my hopes too high too quickly! The 3 sessions go smoothly. I feel some pain after the first two, which is normal since the foot is healing. As long as I'm here, I get my feet scanned for new orthotics. Finally, he shares some ideas and tips on the subject, most important being:

• Healing starts from the tight, I should stretch my whole leg regularly and not just the foot

• Icing can help reduce swelling, but to increase blood flow, it's better to alternate cold and warm water (again on the whole leg), at least once a week

• An important one I hardly ever heard about: To trigger a healing response, the brain needs to work using low frequency waves, which it does when it's sleeping or when the body is at rest. He advised me to sleep well at night and get some time to rest everyday. That might be the simplest yet hardest thing to do in my everyday life!

• Voltaren, night splint? Why not, if it helps. I should listen to my body signals

• Orthodics help rest the feet, I should wear them when I run

And that's it. Overall a wise decision to consult and finally get some professional advice, other than my German physician top notch solution: "well, just stop running... NEXT!"

See you on the trail in two weeks!